Fleets

Racing at Grafham is organised through ‘fleets’. Each fleet elects a Captain as a recognisable point-of-contact. The Fleet Captain represents his fleet on Racing Committee and organises fleet-based activities, both on and off the water.

RACING FLEETS

Grafham does not prescribe the classes that may race: club racing is open to most dinghies, catamarans and small keelboats. Owners of boats without a recognised handicap who wish to race should consult the Office for advice on which fleet they should join and on an appropriate handicap rating to be applied.

Notwithstanding the above, the Club does designate specific classes that it particularly supports, with the object of encouraging competitive one-design racing. These classes (listed below) either sail off dedicated starts (Flying Fifteens and Lasers) or sail as a single class within mixed fleets (Sprint-15s in the Slow Catamaran fleet and L2000s and RS400s in the Asymmetric fleet. Separate Series Results are published for each of these recognised classes.

Although dinghy racing is a high-profile activity at Grafham, a significant proportion of members like to sail without the competitive edge. Indeed, many active racers welcome the opportunity to sail for pure enjoyment: the enjoyment might come from a relaxing evening on the water but, equally, it may be the result of a wild sail on the ragged edge.

Clearly, any boat permitted to sail at Grafham can, when the water is open, cruise it – either alone or in company with others. Some boats are more suitable for the purpose than others, either by virtue of their stability or the space they offer but, in principle, anything goes.